Glazed Pork Rolls with Bacon, Caramelized Onions, pickled Eggplant

Glazed Pork Rolls with Bacon, Caramelized Onions, Pickled Eggplant, a taste extravaganza so incredible with level after level of flavor taking your taste buds on an epic adventure of the passion of cooking. 

Song of the day: Roundabout - Yes.

Glazed Pork Rolls with bacon, Caramelized Onion,  Pickled eggplant, is a compilation of intense flavors, nurtured with wonderful spices through marination, and in the final stages of rolling, to the finale of slow grilling and glazing, leaving you with an incredibly moist, tender, succulent taste experience!

[Thanks to The Italian Centre Shop who sponsored this post.]

Glazed pork rolls,  this is a great way to bring in the summer. Barbecuing, grilling, whatever you want to call it, is one of my favorite ways to cook. Think about it, beautiful sunny day, light breeze from the north, and the smoke coming off the grill with an aroma of pure food love.

The Italian Centre Shop asked us if we could feature some of the meat products produced by local organic farmers, and we wouldn't be happier. Summer is hitting wonderful sunny notes, and for me, I could only think of making something incredibly delicious and of course being in our backyard oasis barbecuing up a storm to the tranquil sound of our pond. Life can only get better!

So first things first, inspiration. A few months ago we were at another fellow blogger's house, Valerie, from  A Canadian Foodie, she was doing a series of recipes with chefs, and food bloggers. On this particular day, it was with Margaret and Raymond of Kitchen Frau. She was making German rouladen amongst other very delicious dishes. I remember the tenderness of those rouladen and the flavors were incredible, and hence the inspiration for this Glazed Pork Rolls with Bacon, Caramelized Onions, Pickled Eggplant. Thanks, Margaret, for the inspiration!

Let's get going!

I know you're probably thinking, wow Loreto, this is really complex, all those spices. I say if you have them use them, and if you don't, then use what you got. I love flavor and maybe it is like my personality, complex in a simplistic sort of way. I grew up cooking with my nonna and mom and dad, yes my dad, which was strange for those times because not many Italian men cooked, but not my dad, he loves cooking, which paved the way for me to express myself in a culinary way, and I guess why not, make it colorful and tasty.

So with that being said, here is the marinate spice list: brown sugar, peanut oil, white wine, oregano and the list goes on and on. I would suggest going into the recipe. So I wanted to really elevate the rolls and so overnight marinating is the best way to do this. I picked up some pork steaks from the ICS produced by Messinger Meats, a local farm dedicated to humane practices, and well organically fed animals. I still have some difficulty with the passing experience, but knowing they had a good life makes me feel way better, and always feeling gratitude for the sacrifice hold deeply in my heart, body, and soul.

The interior houses bacon from Irving's Farm a well knows pork producer from these parts. The pork steak I filleted really thin and this really would enable me to roll them, and also to make this protein so tender. I did tenderize the fillets with a meat clever, and I have to tell you I could see those strands relax and this will enable the marinade to really sink in.

I was thinking of the filling and I wanted that acidity like I tasted in Margaret's rouladen, but wanted to add a bit of Italian to the mix, so I decided on an eggplant that we use in panini and also as an appetizer that is jarred with olive oil and vinegar, plus some spices. The sweet factor is coming from a slow sauteed onion, caramelized to no end. The rolls are ready to go and the Glazed Pork Rolls with Bacon, Caramelized Onion, Pickled Eggplant are ready for the grill that has been warming up.

There are some kitchen utensils that you must have, and this grilling basket is one I highly recommend. It holds whatever you put in it really well. The amazing thing is you can adjust the pressure so it can house something really plump, like this Glazed Pork Rolls, or thin fish, and even wings. The smell coming off the grill is amazing, that bacon melting in the roll, and adding such moistness, I just want a piece to fall off so I can taste it.

To take these to incredible levels of flavor,  I concocted a glaze using a balsamic BBQ sauce and kicking it up a few million notches with brown sugar, mustard, thyme, basil, white wine, white pepper. It looks like a witches' brew but the flavor would be a witch that went to culinary school. The heat on this glazed pork recipe is slow and low, using the indirect heat method to ensure these babies don't become pork jerky! The sheen is beautiful, the sugars just releasing and caramelized on the surface, of that crimson, rich rosy glaze blend.

I am so excited to cut into this. I wanted to keep the side simple so some nice grilled corn and cut pin wheel fashion and some wonderful slaw, was just what the doctor ordered, giving us that ray of sunshine for these Glazed Pork Rolls with Bacon, Caramelized Onion, Pickled Eggplant.

I put the first forkful in my mouth and wow. The glaze prepares me for the flavor train hitting many destinations. The pork so juicy and tender it is melting in my mouth. That smokiness of the bacon-infused ever so subtly offering that smoke that marries so well with the sweetness of those caramelized onions that are like a jam to my tongue. Then out of nowhere in comes this acidity from the eggplant that has decided to have a close relationship with the onion, bacon, and pork fillet, absolutely incredible. My mouth is in heaven and my body is relaxing and preparing for the second, third, fourth bite. I love the charred bits and that glaze that has candied on top. This Glazed Pork Rolls with Bacon, Caramelized Onion, Pickled Eggplant is a keeper, I am sure your family and friends with totally enjoy this flavor experience!

Happy BBQ Season, summer is finally here!

Enjoy!

Glazed Pork Rolls with Bacon, Caramelized Onions, Pickled Eggplant

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• Prep Time: 30 minutes
• Cook Time: 50 minutes
• Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes

Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

Pork:

• 500 g pork steak filleted to a 3 mm thickness

Marinade:

• ¼ cup brown sugar
• 1 Tbsp sesame oil
• 4 Tbsp peanut oil
• ⅓ cup white wine
• 1 ½ Tbsp fresh thyme
• 1 Tbsp dried parsley
• ½ tsp dried oregano
• ½ lemon squeezed and zested
• 1 tsp balsamic cream
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• ½ tsp white pepper
• 1 tsp onion powder
• ½ tsp sea salt

Filling:

• ¾ cup of white onion chopped in slivers
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• Pinch of sugar
• ½ tsp onion powder
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Some water
• 5 organic bacon strips cut in half
• ¼ cup of pickled eggplant

Glaze:

• 4 Tbsp Balsamic BBQ sauce
• 1 Tbsp brown sugar
• 2 tsp white wine
• 1 tsp mustard
• ½ tsp white pepper
• 1 tsp fresh thyme
• 1 tsp fresh basil chopped
• Salt to taste

Corn:

• 2 cobs of corn shucked and cleaned
• 1 tsp fresh parsley chopped
• 1 tsp fresh basil chopped
• 2 Tbsp butter melted
• Salt and pepper to taste

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Instructions

Marinate:

1. Take pork fillets and place in a large baking dish.
2. Take and blend all of the marinating ingredients and pour over fillets.
3. Turn fillets making sure all sides are well coated.
4. Cover with plastic wrap and place in fridge over night.

Caramelized onions:

1. In a saute pan drizzle in olive oil.
2. Add in onions and season with sugar, salt, pepper, onion powder.
3. Saute on low to med heat adding some water to steam the onion a bit.
4. Sautee for about 15 minutes.
5. Take off heat and set aside.

Filling and rolling:

1. Take a pork fillet.
2. Lay bacon to cover fillet.
3. Add caramelized onion, and pickled eggplant.
4. Start rolling on one of the long sides.
5. Use your fingers to hold the filling in tight and continue to roll until it is completed.
6. Place on a dish, seam side down.
7. Repeat this process until all the fillets are complete.

Glaze:

1. Mix all ingredients of the glaze in a medium sauce pan and place on low heat of side burner of BBQ.
2. Reduce for about 15 minutes.

Corn:

1. Place corn cobs in boiling salted water.
2. Cook for about 20 minutes.
3. Take out of water and drain.
4. Take parsley, basil, salt and pepper, and mix with melted butter.
5. Place corn on heated grill and char all sides, about 5 minutes.

Grilling:

1. Pre-heat BBQ.
2. Place pork rolls in a large BBQ grilling basket, placing the lid on tight to hold the rolls tight, so they don't come apart.
3. Place basket of rolls on grill and get a char on each side of the rolls.
4. Turn rolls frequently and don't leave them, so they don't burn.
5. Grill for about 5 minutes a side, just enough to get some color.
6. Turn heat off side of BBQ that rolls are on.
7. Take the glaze and begin to brush onto rolls.
8. Turn basket over and do the same.
9. Keep doing this for about 20-25 minutes.
10. Turn all heat off BBQ and leave rolls in for about 2 minutes.
11. Take off heat and release rolls from basket, and place on a serving dish.
12. Let stand for a couple of minutes.

Plating:

1. Cut corn into pin wheels and place on a dish.
2. Take a couple of the glazed pork rolls beside the corn.
3. Add some slaw or salad (optional).
4. Ready to serve.
5. Enjoy!

Notes

I have not included the marinating time in the prep time, but it stands as overnight.

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Loreto

When I am not cooking, I enjoy playing musical instruments, singing, writing. I have learned over the years to live in gratitude and enjoy the moment.